There were questions about Foster’s attitude and his personality and maybe even his work ethic.

“Apparently, some people thought I was a (jerk),” Foster said.

Apparently.

To make matters worse, he wasn’t productive on the field his senior season at Tennessee. NFL teams will take a chance on almost anyone if they think the guy can help them win, but Foster didn’t seem worth the trouble.

So he sat home on draft day 17 months ago and listened as 256 other names were called.

“I was distraught,” he said. “I thought my career was over.” This morning, Arian Foster might be the most interesting player in the entire National Football League. No player has come so far in such a short amount of time, from the depth of despair on draft day to the top of the heap.

There was something about Foster that intrigued the Texans. They looked at his size and his speed, and they believed he had a chance to make it in the NFL.

They didn’t feel strongly about him, or they would have used a draft pick on him. But when the draft ended, they took the unusual step of offering an undrafted free agent a two-year contract.

Harris and Smith had some tough-love chats with him. Smith told him that perception is reality in a people business.

“The best thing you can do for a person is tell ’em the truth right away,” Harris said. “Just tell ’em what we’ve heard and where he has to go. What we told Arian was ‘Here are your weaknesses. Here’s your personality. Now what are we going to do about it?’”

Harris told Foster that he had to outwork every other player on the roster just to get a chance. He also had to keep his mouth shut, and when he got a chance to play, he had to prove all those people who didn’t think he was worth the trouble wrong.

Foster did everything he was asked, and then some. He was in the weight room at 5:30 a.m., pounding, pounding, pounding, showing the Texans he deserved a chance.

He was on the practice field early, too, running hard, saying nothing, hoping against hope for a chance. Even when the Texans cut him at the end of training camp in 2009, he didn’t give up.

He was re-signed to the practice squad and went back to work. Beginning around midseason last year, Smith would tell head coach Gary Kubiak: “Are you seeing what I’m seeing from Arian Foster?”

We’ve all seen it now.

The Texans had a remarkable opening day in beating the Indianapolis Colts 34-24 on Sunday afternoon at Reliant Stadium. And it was about more than the final score.

A different ending

When the Texans were born, they were placed in the AFC South, home to one of the franchises every other is compared to and home to one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history.

The Texans began this day 1-15 against Peyton Manning and the Colts, and even though they’d gotten close in recent years, even though they’d had chances to win, the Colts made just enough plays to torture, tease, and, in the end, beat the Texans.

For one day at least, there was a different ending, an ending that gives the Texans confidence that they’re finally ready for prime time.

Williams had a huge day, a dominating day, the kind of day the Texans have hoped for more of since they made him the first pick of the 2006 draft.

The Texans got pressure on Manning all day long, and a secondary that included two rookie cornerbacks and two others with just 31 games of NFL experience held up.

But the Texans mainly won because Arian Foster had a day he will remember forever.

In just his second NFL start, he went for a team-record 231 yards, the second-most ever for an NFL back on opening day, second only to O.J. Simpson’s 250 in 1973.

There are different ways to win, but to win this way, to line up and knock the other team off the ball, to win football’s essential battle, was the sweetest way of all.

The Texans never trailed. They led 13-10 at halftime, then came out in the second half and ran 10 straight running plays. If this was a statement game, this was their statement.

The Texans were going to make it a street fight, and they were going to win that street fight.

“It felt great,” left tackle Duane Brown said. “You’re not giving guys like (Dwight) Freeney and (Robert) Mathis a chance to rush the quarterback, and they get frustrated.” The offensive line — and fullback Vonta Leach, the unsung hero — opened huge holes, but it was Foster grinding out yard after yard after yard. At one point in the second half, offensive linemen were yelling at Kubiak: “Let’s keep running it!”

Afterward, when Kubiak awarded Foster a game ball, Foster tossed it to his offensive linemen.

“Hey, he doesn’t make enough money to buy us gifts,” right tackle Eric Winston joked.

Foster is different. He studies philosophy, writes poetry and admits, “I like to walk to the beat of a different drummer. I guess I’m somewhat of a rebel, and it hurt me early on.”

Quietly optimistic

This training camp ended with a quiet optimism around the Texans. They’ve been built one brick at a time, and after all the painful defeats and all the work, they believed they were prepared to turn some kind of corner.

To win this one, they turned to a player who might be the perfect face for this franchise. Arian Foster got his chance because he didn’t believe the people who doubted him, because he was willing to pay whatever price he was asked to pay, because he kept dreaming he eventually could get where he wanted to go. In a locker room filled with happy players and coaches, he surely was the happiest of all.

“You see guys like Andre Johnson and Matt Schaub and the way they carry themselves as professionals and businessmen,” Foster said, “and you kind of mimic that and develop your own personality through the course of your time being here. They set the tone here. They are our leaders, and I’m in a privileged position to be here.”